The Practices of Tibetan Buddhism - Lama Kathy

The Practices of Tibetan Buddhism

By Kathy Wesley. Draft copy. Last revision 3.12. 00

Introduction The Working Basis
When we first approach Tibetan Buddhism, it’s rather All students start at the same place: understanding
like approaching a house with several front doors. Not Enlightenment and how important it is to attain spir-
only do we not know which door to enter, we don’t itual awakening.
know what to say or do when we go inside. When he was alive 2,500 years ago, the historical Bud-
Tibetan Buddhism, with its many practices, color- dha, named Shakyamuni, taught that the mind was
ful temples and hosts of meditational deities, may at the seat of all experience—that everything we expe-
first seem confusing to the new student. But when we rience, happiness and sadness, pleasure and pain—is
understand how the different deities and practices fit perceived, framed and experienced by the mind.
together, the picture isn’t so confusing. He also taught that our minds have a basic nature of
Part of our difficulty in approaching Tibetan Bud- enlightened sanity and goodness—that the mind is
dhism is cultural. In Old Tibet, students grew up in basically clear and without limit—but that it is dif-
the Buddhist tradition, and its practices were as fa- ficult for the average person to experience this basic
miliar as the lama (teacher) down the road or the nature because of afflictive emotions, or kleshas.
gompa (temple) in the next river valley. In the West, Afflictive emotions, like all thoughts, arise continu-
however, Buddhism is still new, and the progression ally in the mind, and create a sort of emotional fog
of practice—how students progress from one level to that keeps us from seeing our basic nature. Because
another—is neither obvious nor logical in its outward we don’t understand the fleeting, temporary nature of
appearance. We haven’t grown up in Buddhism, so these thoughts and emotions, and don’t realize them
its Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and its practices seem as mere manifestations of mind’s deeper basic nature,
strange and exotic—and inaccessible—to us. we tend to cling to these thoughts and emotions, us-
But with guidance, it’s easy to see the patterns in the ing them to build a self-identity we come to call “I.”
Tibetan Buddhist tradition, and see how the practices Because we are preoccupied with this “I” and its su-
develop in a logical, step-by-step fashion. This under- perficial thoughts and emotions, it is difficult for us to
standing gives us the confidence to go on in our prac- perceive our basic enlightened nature. So we tend to
tice, and progress along the path as the practitioners think that the sources of personal happiness and well-
of the past have done. being are outside ourselves, and spend most of our
That is the purpose of this booklet: to introduce the time pursuing temporary physical and mental happi-
varying practices of Tibetan Buddhism, and show ness from these outside sources.
how they progress from one level to another. It is by But if we would recognize thoughts and emotions for
no means an exhaustive explanation; there is much in what they are—mere waves on the surface of a deeper,
Tibetan Buddhism that is not covered in this book. basically happy and sane mind—we could clear the
But this guide will give a general idea of the basic way for a different sort of life, a life in which we expe-
types of practices, so the new student can add to his or rience, from moment-to-moment, the innate enlight-
her understanding of, and confidence in, the Tibetan ened nature of the mind. This, the Buddha said, was
tradition. called enlightenment.

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The practices of Buddhism, then, lead us step by step fruition of this “creating our own world” can happen
from confusion to enlightenment, a process which at any time—in the current lifetime, or a lifetime to
takes many years and much sincere effort to accom- come. Thus, a person who has been brutal to others
plish. But even if enlightenment may seem far away, for many lifetimes has created a world of brutality and
it isn’t - the Buddha, himself a simple human being, suffering that will last for a long, long time—perhaps
achieved it, and taught that everyone else could, too. several more lifetimes—until the negative effects of
That’s because everyone has a mind—which the Bud- that brutality and selfishness are countered by posi-
dha called the working basis for enlightenment. tive, selfless action. Selfless action creates a world of
peace and gentleness around us—positive people
The Choice have a particular kind of pleasant, happy energy about
Every person, then, has a choice to make - to decide them, and tend to make others feel at ease as well.
whether to pursue enlightenment, and the lasting That’s why the Buddha gave the teachings on karma.
happiness that goes along with it, or to stay in the To show us that what we do is very important for our
world of confusion and conflicting emotions, which future happiness and to make us care about our fu-
the Buddha called samsara. In making this choice, ture life (or rather, lives). If we care about our future
people have to begin to understand the benefits of lives and see the truth of karma, we will want to prac-
enlightenment, and the drawbacks of staying in the tice any discipline that reduces our selfishness, also
samsaric world. called ego-clinging, and increases our selflessness.
The greatest immediate benefit of enlightenment, the By increasing our selflessness, we weaken the grip of
Buddha taught, is the elimination of suffering. And conflicting emotions, and this enables us to “see” and
this suffering is eliminated by doing away with its experience the basically sane and good nature of our
cause—selfish action. In our average, confused state of minds. This leads to lasting happiness and enlighten-
mind, we are very selfish—we do everything to make ment.
ourselves happy and comfortable, even if it means An enlightened being, the Buddha taught, has no self-
hurting others. But the actions that we take against ishness, and so can help other people in a perfect way
others—even minor ones like lying to other people, or and be a beacon of inspiration to others who seek en-
snubbing their attempts to offer us caring and affec- lightenment. That is why images of the Buddha are so
tion—actually can rebound on us and cause us more prominent on Buddhist shrines; to serve as an inspi-
pain. The Buddha called this the law of karma. ration to seek out the hidden perfection (called Bud-
When we hurt others, we hurt ourselves—we make dha nature) that we all carry within ourselves.
our personal world more brutal, more lawless—just as
the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once taught that racist How the practices work
thoughts and actions enslaved whites as well as blacks. The practices of Tibetan Buddhism start with this
Some people like to say that karma is a sort of cosmic working basis and choice and follow in a step-by-step
justice, a sort of “what goes around, comes around,” fashion. The first practices calm the mind so it can
but it boils down simply to this: we create our own glimpse its own Buddha nature, and then follow with a
world with our thoughts and actions. The more brutal series of other practices that root out ego-clinging and
and selfish our actions, the more brutal and selfish our replace selfish habits with selfless ones. Lastly, when
world—and its sufferings—become. selfless action has begun to clear more suffering and
And because the Buddha taught reincarnation (the negativity from the mind, the practitioner is ready to
continuation of experience from life to life) as an ex- undertake deeper practices that quicken the pace of
tension of the law of karma, it’s easy to see that the realization and put total enlightenment within reach.

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It is important that these practices be followed in the shinay, we sit quietly and comfortably and rest our
correct order. If people decide for themselves that they awareness either on the breath or an external object,
don’t need mind-calming practices like tranquility such as a flower or a statue of the Buddha. By settling
meditation and jump immediately into the deeper prac- our awareness and calming our minds, we come to
tices without the proper preparation, they run the risk see that thoughts and emotions in the mind arise and
of damaging themselves both mentally and physically disappear as easily as clouds form and dissipate in the
and creating “ego-hood” instead of “Buddhahood.” sky. This helps us understand that our self-concept is
not a solid, changeless entity, and that our minds ac-
The Spiritual Friend tually are quite workable and changeable. This under-
Because there are so many practices and so many standing—and the gradual mental stability that comes
ways to apply them, it is important to have a spiritual from regular practice of shinay—can help us work
friend—a teacher or lama—to guide us on the path. with all the other practices of Tibetan Buddhism.
The spiritual friend, who already has traversed the That’s why lamas call shinay the foundation of all
path and understands its hidden dangers, can safely practice. Without developing some mental stability, it
take us through the practices and give us advice that will be impossible for us to deal with ego-clinging and
will help us transform ourselves. Giving in to and tak- conflicting emotions. We will see every thought and
ing the advice of a qualified spiritual friend actually is emotion as being solid and “real,” which will catch us
an important step on the path; if we stubbornly insist in a constant web of hope and fear - hoping for a cer-
that only we know what is best for us, that’s actually tain outcome, or fearing another. We won’t be able to
a form of selfishness and pride that can be a strong relax and deal with our lives and experiences calmly -
obstacle to our spiritual development. we’ll always be locked in some sort of struggle. Shinay
We need, then, to find a spiritual friend who is right shows us we don’t have to struggle to gain awareness,
for us, who knows our minds and has a certain amount and that awareness itself can be a powerful tool for
of selflessness so they can guide us in the correct way. spiritual transformation.
In evaluating a spiritual friend, we have to ask our- The ultimate goal of shinay is a sense of calm abiding,
selves some questions. What is this person like? Do in which the mind is undisturbed by (although not
their actions match their teachings? Do they appear to devoid of) thoughts and emotions. It is in this state
be pursuing a path of selflessness, or do they appear to that one can gain a glimpse of the true nature of mind
be pursing a path of ego-clinging? After asking these and phenomena—an experience called Lhaktong in
questions, and reviewing a teacher carefully, we then Tibetan, Vipassana in Sanskrit or “insight.”
can decide whether to accept this teacher’s advice.
Particularly trusted teachers can become known as Refuge
our gurus, meaning they have a special place in our The first big step for a practitioner on the path of Ti-
lives. The teacher who gives us the instructions that betan Buddhism is the taking of refuge. Anyone, Bud-
do the most toward developing our minds is known dhist or non-Buddhist, can learn to meditate and use
as our tsawai lama or root guru. This person plays a the practices of awareness, but to continue on and use
pivotal role in our spiritual development. the other practices of the Tibetan tradition takes a
sort of commitment.
Shinay (Tranquility meditation) So the beginning Buddhist takes refuge by coming
One of the very first practices of Tibetan Buddhism before before a lama and publicly affirming his or her
is Shinay (a Tibetan word, which in Sanskrit is called trust in the Buddha, the Buddha’s teachings (called
Shamata), also called Tranquility meditation. In the Dharma) and the community of spiritual prac-

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titioners (called the Sangha). The practitioner then Although it is never required, some Buddhists choose
gains several things: the beginnings of confidence to formalize their commitment to constructive activi-
and faith, and objects of refuge (the Buddha, Dharma ties by taking the Lay Precepts. In taking these pre-
and Sangha) that can act as sources of inspiration and cepts, we vow not to kill, steal, lie, take intoxicants or
protection. How can the sources of refuge protect indulge in sexual misconduct. By making this formal
us? When we are buffeted to and fro by conflicting commitment, we cut down on external distractions
emotions, we may feel alone and defenseless, but if that contribute to wild emotional swings and ego-
we think of the Buddha or his teachings or his com- centered grasping and increase our sense of inner sta-
munity of practitioners, we realize we are not alone bility and strength.
and that we have methods to deal with the things that
make us feel alone and without defenses. Bodhicitta and the Bodhisattva Vow
This is where prayer can be of value to us. When we As we practice shamata and constructive activity, we
feel upset or without a strong center, we can pray to will find that our minds begin a gradual change. We
the Buddha for strength and inspiration. The Buddha’s are less worried about ourselves and our personal
only wish was that all beings become enlightened, and possessions and “territory” and are more open to oth-
he dedicated his life to accomplishing that goal. That ers. We begin to see that other beings are just like us
wish in itself means that he is constantly with us, and in their wish for happiness, but are held down by their
that the strength of his example is always open to us. conflicting emotions and selfishness, just as we have
Knowing this, our prayers are successful and our con- been. We begin to see the reasons for their sufferings,
fidence is bolstered. and begin to take more interest in helping them reach
enlightenment themselves.
Constructive action—precepts and vows In the Tibetan tradition, this re-direction of interests
Once we have dedicated ourselves to the Buddhist and energies is formalized in a practice called Bodh-
path through Refuge, it’s important to re-direct our icitta. Bodhicitta is a Sanskrit word meaning, “Mind
energies to pursuing constructive activities. Because of Awakening,” and is defined as both the wish to gain
we understand karma, and know that selfishness and enlightenment for the sake of others and the activity
selfish action are the causes of suffering and confu- that leads to that enlightenment.
sion, we try to pursue activities that decrease our ego- As we gain more experience through our practice, we
clinging and increase our selflessness. The Buddhists see that while our former motivation of gaining en-
call these actions virtuous actions because they nullify lightenment solely for ourselves was helpful in getting
ego-clinging. us to practice, that we eventually need to broaden our
The Buddha gave a list of virtuous and non-virtuous horizon and shake off the last traces of selfishness in
activities to serve as a guide in helping us follow a self- our motivation to reach enlightenment.
less life. He taught that killing, lying, stealing, sexual The height of this desire to rid ourselves of selfishness is
misconduct, drunkenness, gossip, slander, covetous- shown in taking the Bodhisattva Vow, in which we vow
ness, resentment and non-spiritual views lead to more to work toward enlightenment for the benefit of all be-
selfishness and suffering. He also taught that protect- ings. This means we have recognized the importance of
ing life, generosity, living ethically, telling the truth, others to our path, and that we know our field of work-
patching up quarrels, speaking with gentleness, dis- ing on ourselves includes our relationships to others.
cussing things helpfully, rejoicing in the fortune of We generate Bodhicitta by saying prayers of aspira-
others, thinking of others’ benefit and not denounc- tion (bolstering the “wish” part of our practice) and
ing the beliefs of others produce more peace and hap- by counteracting our ego-clinging through practic-
piness, not only for ourselves, but for others, as well.

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ing loving-kindness and compassion for others and consist of two parts: Ordinary and Extraordinary
through practicing the Six Perfections: Generosity, preliminaries.
Patience, Ethics, Diligence, Meditation and Wisdom Ordinary preliminaries are contemplative medita-
(fulfilling the “activity” part of Bodhicitta). tions on the preciousness of human life, the imperma-
And while realizing Ultimate Bodhicitta, a complete un- nence of all existence, the truth of karma and the un-
derstanding of the limitless nature of mind, is difficult satisfactoriness of samsaric, confused life. Once these
to practice and understand, Relative Bodhicitta—the contemplations are done properly, a person’s mind is
practice of compassion—is easy to grasp and practice. firmly turned toward the Dharma, and they are ready
By developing compassion—first for ourselves, and to begin the Extraordinary foundations;
then for others—we break down the barriers of ego- Extraordinary preliminaries consist of liturgical prac-
generated prejudices, which makes it easier to accept tices in which a person re-affirms their refuge vow and
ourselves and others and work for their benefit. intention; says purification mantras; mentally offers
Through these practices of Bodhicitta, we become themselves and all the world’s treasures to the lineage
Bodhisattvas—which is translated as “awakening be- teachers and to the Enlightened beings; and affirms
ings.” We commit ourselves to achieving enlighten- their connection to the lineage through the relation-
ment, and we take proper steps to accomplish the ship with their personal teacher. Each of these things
goal, just like the spiritual seekers of old who set their is done in a ritual manner 111,111 times—a number
objectives and then persevered to achieve them. said to firmly implant the ideas in a person’s spiritual
In this way, our commitment to the path of mental being.
and emotional stability becomes deeper and the resul- After completing ngondrö, several practices can be
tant rewards become richer. given, depending on the student. Although there are
many practices, the main ones taught to students in
The Preliminary Practices: Ngondrö the West are the Vajrayana practices called deity yoga
After taking this step of dedicating ourselves to the and Mahamudra.
Bodhisattva path, we can then practice the deeper
meditation methods of the Vajrayana (or diamond Deity yoga: Yidam practices
path) and can more quickly realize our own innately Even after practicing shamata, Bodhicitta and the Pre-
enlightened natures. liminaries, we are still subject to confusion and con-
In the Vajrayana, we use visualization and mantra flicting emotions. To help root out these conflicting
to enhance our appreciation (and experience) of our emotions quickly, teachers of the past have passed on
Buddha nature. Through the practices of the Vajray- the transmission of sadhanas (liturgies) on the various
ana, we imagine ourselves to be fully awakened bud- Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Tibetan tradition.
dhas or bodhisattvas and our world to be an enlight- Through practicing these rituals, we can quicken our
ened paradise—essentially relating to ourselves as we understanding of the basic nature of mind (which, as
really are, rather than the way we appear right now. we explained before is limitless, clear and unimped-
But before embarking on this profound and complex ed). We do this by visualizing a perfectly enlightened
path, we need to make sure our motivation (and our being and then mentally re-creating ourselves in the
practice) is pure and selfless, and that our commit- image of this enlightened being. Through this, we rec-
ment to the path is complete. ognize that our bodily form is without inherent exis-
To accomplish this, the next step in the Tibetan tradi- tence (like the body of the deity); that our speech is
tion is Ngondrö, or the Preliminary Practices. These pure dharmic communication (like the sacred man-
tras spoken by the deity); and that our minds are the

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vast expanse of open awareness without the stain of Some dharma students, after finishing ngondrö, are
conflicting emotions (like the mind of the deity). given a yidam for life; others are given several yidam
These practices are called Vajrayana or Tantrayana be- practices to do.
cause they use the principle of tantra, which means
“thread” or “connection,” referring to the thread of Mahamudra
wakefulness that runs through all of our experienc- In Sanskrit, Mahamudra means “great symbol” or
es. By recognizing our unity with the enlightened “great seal.” In Tibetan, the word is chak ya chenpo.
being of our meditation, we discover a connection It refers both to the basic limitless, clear, unimpeded
between everything—good happenings, bad happen- nature of mind and to the methods used to achieve
ings, all our thoughts, emotions and experiences— the realization of that mind. Mahamudra is the main
and enlightenment. We see ourselves as sacred, and meditative practice of the Kagyu tradition of Tibetan
our world as a sacred place filled with the manifesta- Buddhism, and has been handed down from teacher to
tions of enlightenment, and our thoughts as the play student in an unbroken line for more than 1,000 years.
of enlightened awareness. In this way, our practice These practices are given only when a teacher is cer-
of meditation can proceed continuously throughout tain a student is both ready and able to practice them.
even the mundane activities of our daily lives, and we The teachings generally are given after a student com-
can achieve enlightenment more rapidly. pletes ngondrö, and they may or may not be given at
The Buddhas and bodhisattvas (deities) used in these the same time as yidam meditation instruction.
tantric practices, called yidams in Tibetan, are used as The Monastic Path; The Three-Year Retreat
the focus for meditations in which we recognize the While most practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism in the
true enlightened nature of our minds. West remain householders, monastic communities
Yidams are considered emanations of enlightened of celibate monks and nuns are developing. In these
mind, and some actually refer to people who lived settings, practitioners who wish to devote their entire
either before or after the time of the Buddha. Exter- lives to practice are able to pursue their practice with
nally, they have many appearances, and their very extraordinary dedication.
forms symbolize their enlightened activity. There are Another practice setting Western students can partici-
peaceful yidams (such as Chenrezig, the bodhisattva pate in is the Three-Year Retreat, where students leave
of compassion) pleasant in appearance, which sym- homes and families for three years and three phases
bolize the calm and clear aspects of our inner minds, of the moon and practice intensively, following a set
and there are wrathful deities, which symbolize the pattern of progressive Vajrayana practices. The retreat
more active aspects of our minds. is designed to give students a complete set of dharmic
To properly practice these meditations, preparation tools for the accomplishment of enlightenment in one
is needed. Among these preparations are Empower- lifetime. It also allows some of them to become lamas
ment (called wang in Tibetan), in which a teacher and teach others.
ritually blesses and introduces the student to the de-
ity; Reading transmission, (called lung) in which the Summary
text of the sadhana is ritually read to the student as an This discussion of the practices of Tibetan Buddhism
authorization; and Practical Instruction (called tri), focuses on the Kagyu tradition, one of four existing
in which the Development (visualization) and Fulfill- lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. It is meant as an over-
ment (meditation) stages of the practice are explained view of the progression of teaching, to show that the
in detail. Without these three parts, it is difficult to practices of the Tibetan tradition build upon one an-
fully practice a particular deity. other in a logical sequence that anyone can follow.

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The danger in presenting this type of overview, how- The preciousness of our human life is not to be taken
ever, is that by reading about the later practices of Bud- lightly; soon death will overtake us and we will no
dhism, students may wish to skip the earlier phases, longer be able to practice, being instead pushed by
wrongly thinking they are “just for beginners.” But in our karmic accumulations into a future life that may
actuality the earlier phases are critical to accomplish- not be as favorable as the one we now enjoy. That we
ing the later ones. To be tempted to “skip ahead” and have encountered the teachings of the Buddha at all
try other practices before current ones are finished means we are very, very fortunate to have what the
can only fuel the fires of the conflicting emotions of Tibetan tradition calls a “precious human birth;” all
impatience and pride, making us more confused and we must do now is decide how best to use it.
less able to practice effectively. Whether we know it or not, we all are already on a
The best method for following these practices is to spiritual path of some kind; we seek happiness and
find a Dharma center and a qualified lama or teacher, wish to avoid suffering, and have the beginnings of
and to begin learning the proper methods of study feelings of compassion for ourselves and others. So it’s
and practice. After studying the methods carefully up to us to start from where we are and decide wheth-
and asking questions to clear up any lingering doubts, er to go forward into enlightenment or backward into
students should practice diligently until understand- confusion. As the Buddha said, we alone are the ones
ing is reached. who can save ourselves, and we must work on our
own salvation with diligence.

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